By NICK SLOAN,
NJSloan212@gmail.com
Kansas 4A basketball has been a hot-spot for showdowns this year - most of which have involved Basehor-Linwood.
Basehor-Linwood has played Sumner Academy and Topeka-Hayden this year so far.
On Saturday, they'll host Ottawa in the finals of the Basehor-Linwood Invitational Tournament at Basehor-Linwood High School.
KCK Preps will be on scene to broadcast the final on Saturday evening.
The game features two of the top three teams in Kansas 4A if you believe in the polls or rankings.
At least one of the two schools has played in the last three state title games in Kansas 4A. Ottawa lost to Sumner Academy the past two years in the final, while Basehor-Linwood claimed the 2009 state championship.
If you like shooting forwards and power forwards at the high school level, this will be your type of ball-game.
Ottawa has perhaps the best overall basketball player in the state of Kansas in Semi Ojeleye. Ojeleye is averaging 31 points and 7 rebounds this season - and he's just a junior.
The junior recently broke Adam Hasty's scoring record - and again, he's not even halfway through his junior season. Ojeleye has a decent shot at 2,000 points if he remains healthy.
This week has been one full of milestones at Basehor-Linwood.
Colin and Ryan Murphy, two 6'6 pair of twins for the Bobcats, each hit the 1,000 point mark at the home team's tournament this week. The Murphys may not have the flair and pure dominance Ojeleye has displayed so far this year, but they're a threat. They can hit the three and score from anywhere on the court.
Joining the Murphy Twins will be Ben Johnson, a very talented forward himself.
As I did with the Basehor-Sumner Academy game preview, I WILL NOT predict a winner.
Instead, I will offer you some key points entering Saturday's showdown.
1. Ojeleye looks to rebound from a bad performance against Basehor last year. Basehor is one of the
very few teams Ojeleye has had a bad performance against. In last year's game between the two schools, he had just 7 points on 2-of-14 shooting from the field. Senior guard Adam Hasty was responsible for 25 points - but he's moved on. Ojeleye has improved as a junior, but he will absolutely need to rebound against Basehor for the Cyclones to have any shot.
2. Will Basehor's strength of schedule matter? As we know in other sports, sometimes strength of schedule matters in a game and sometimes it's blown out of proporation. It matters in college football considering the SEC dominance in recent years, but it didn't matter as the San Francisco 49ers took out New Orleans, a team that played in a much tougher division. Entering this game, it's clear Basehor has played the tougher schedule. Their guantlet has been impressive. They've defeated Sumner Academy, Rock-Bridge and Bonner Springs outside of Basehor High School. Basehor's only loss came to Topeka-Hayden, which is really no shame. Ottawa comes in undefeated, but their competition level is always questioned. It's unfair sometimes, but saying that Basehor's had the tougher schedule is a true statement. It's so true that Basehor is ranked as the #1 team in Kansas 4A according to MaxPreps' computer formula, while Ottawa is #3 - despite Ottawa being undefeated. Basehor has seen more styles and better teams. Will it matter on Saturday?
3. Basehor needs to limit Ojeleye's free-throw line trips. This one is somewhat out of the control of the Bobcats, especially if they get an officiating crew that gives Ojeleye the star treatment. However, there are somethings Basehor can do. They can prevent offensive rebounds, force shots from the outside and play solid defense without committing silly fouls. Here's why Ojeleye is dangerous even when his shot is off - he gets to the free-throw line an incredible 10 to 11 times a game. Against Eudora, he was just 4-of-12 from the field. However, he was 17-of-20 from the free-throw line. As Tony Soprano would say, "end of story."
4. While enjoying the big men, don't overlook the guard match-ups - they'll be key. Both teams have young sets of guards. Ottawa is led by juniors Alex Hasty and Dallas Natt at the guard position. They combine for around 14 points, 10 rebounds and 6 assists a game. Basehor's guards are also pretty young for the most part, with the exception of senior Brad Waterman. Joining Waterman are sophomores Chase Younger and J.P. Downing and juniors Caleb Hiss and Tanner Garver. Younger has hit double-figures a couple of times this season. All four have provided Basehor some nice minutes so far. If Basehor's guards continue to gain confidence and let it rain when they have nice and open shots, look out Kaw Valley League and 4A competition. However, doing it against Piper and Bishop Ward are one thing. They need to show they can do it against other state title competitors. This will be a good test for both teams' guards and to see how well they can handle adversity. Ottawa's guards are more active on the boards, so it will be interesting to see if that causes any problems for Basehor.
5. Stopping Semi will be tough, but Ottawa will need a great game-plan to stop Colin Murphy, Ryan Murphy and Ben Johnson. The Murphys, in particular, can do damage inside and outside. Their defense is also underrated. Johnson has grown into a good player who can hit 16 points any night of the week and with a great performance, can sneak into the 20's. Basehor has a great challenge in stopping Ojeleye, but Basehor's front-line is the best in 4A - and perhaps the best in the entire state of Kansas. Having three 6'6 guys who are not stiffs provides such a great advantage for a team. They can move well without the ball. Ottawa's challenge will be tough and I wonder if Basehor could wear down Semi by moving those guys around.
6. All that said, if Basehor limits Ojeleye, they win. I hate pointing out the obvious, but take a look at the production of Ojeleye compared to the rest of the team:
Points Per Game: Ojeleye 31.7 (Ottawa 61.5) - Ojeleye accounts for 51.5 percent of the team's points.
Three-Pointers Made: Ojeleye 29 (Ottawa 38) - Ojeleye has hit 76 percent of Ottawa's three-pointers this season.
Free Throws Made: Ojeleye 108 (Ottawa 176) - Ojeleye has hit 61 percent of Ottawa's free throws.
That doesn't mean he's the only good player. If I'm Ottawa, I would build my game plan around Ojeleye too. You would be incredibly stupid if you did not. However, it makes me wonder if the rest of the Cyclones are ready to step up if Ojeleye gets in foul trouble or if Basehor shuts him down like they did last year. While Ottawa has some nice guards, they're not as good as Adam Hasty was last year. To beat Basehor, Ojeleye's 31 points and 7 rebounds may not be enough.
